


You Make Me Feel

by Kabal42



Category: White Collar
Genre: Dom/sub Undertones, Emotion Play, Gen, M/M, Mind Games
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-09
Updated: 2014-02-09
Packaged: 2018-01-11 18:03:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 776
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1176174
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kabal42/pseuds/Kabal42
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Peter and Neal have a game of push and pull, give and take, emotion and power.</p>
            </blockquote>





	You Make Me Feel

**Author's Note:**

> Beta by Calvinahobbes. Thank you! <3

It is not about sex. Peter feels a surge of excitement in certain situations, a flavor that is close to _that_ kind of feeling, but that is not why he does it. Those rushes are more like bonuses, something that comes on top of the deeper satisfaction. Occasionally, alone in the shower, his mind strays to Neal, and his mind fills with images while he strokes himself. What he sees is not Neal’s ass - however fine a specimen it may be. One could do very nice and fascinating things to that ass. No, that is now what captures Peter’s interest. That honor goes to Neal’s face, especially his eyes. The look in them when Peter yanks his chain, not so metaphorically, to get what he needs in the name of justice and the FBI. That particular look haunts Peter when he is alone, relieving tension. Never with Elizabeth, because she captivates all his senses more effectively than anyone else ever could.

Neal has extremely expressive eyes. Most of the time he shields his true feelings, but Peter prides himself that he is better than most at reading them; even through the layers of contrived emotion, carefully crafted to conceal Neal’s inner self. Peter also takes pride in the fact that Neal will, at times, whether he wants to or not, show Peter the truth. His eyes are like his words in that respect. So often they tell only half truths or fragments of a tale, but once in a while, the masks fall and everything is bared and visible. Peter loves moments like that. Perhaps even more so because they are so rare. 

Peter has little desire to break Neal, but he wants him to bend and contort, to twist and turn, to give in to Peter’s will. So Peter will use threats he knows will illicit a response, and give Neal no choice but to obey and be grateful he is still allowed to serve. That slightly forced smile that Neal pastes on is the stage right before a possible crack in the slick surface appears. For that reason it gets to Peter almost as much as the nanosecond flash of real emotion he gets right before it. It is about power.

~ ~ ~ 

Neal thinks that maybe they are past this being a game; at the very least they are coasting dangerously close to a whole other kind of game. Neal is not sure, but he is certain he has developed a morbid satisfaction with pushing Peter and seeing him react. His victory condition is making Peter threaten him with the usual consequences. Running circles around his handler has always been amusing, but as time has worn on, Neal has turned it into a special contest. He is very aware of what it does to Peter, and he plays it for all it’s worth. He hints just a fraction of something, then hides it the instant he sees the glint of recognition in Peter’s eye. He considers it the longest con he has ever run, and like all good cons it works all the better because there is truth in it. Everything he gives away is real; the only hidden part is how much he enjoys the game.

At times, Peter does all the work, grasping at straws, seeing ghosts. Other times Neal has to help it along. Like confessing to Peter that he feels incomplete without the anklet, just to see the second where Peter’s eyes go dark and cloudy before he reins himself in. Neal allows himself the hidden satisfaction of knowing that moment will stay with Peter for a long time, and the success emboldens him enough that he is instantly planning more moments like it. They are playing an elaborate game of truth and dare - and neither of them knows the stakes before the cards are on the table.

Years of training and constantly being on guard means that Neal never doubts that he holds the better hand, no matter what Peter might think. Consequently, he is never worried about losing, though he takes care never to get cocky either; Peter is the smartest man he knows, far more dangerous an opponent than any other, and Neal wants to stay on his good side, contrary to what Peter seems to think. His confidence remains secure till the day where Peter grabs his neck, firmly, rough, the way a bitch would her pup, and for a dizzying moment the world spins and Neal is no longer certain who is conning who. It stabilizes the moment it dawns on him that this is how it is supposed to be. The game is still on.


End file.
